instore - February 2018 - 8

news

NEED TO KNOW
Retail prepared
foods set for growth
Prepared foods are set for big growth in the coming
year, according to a new report.
About 80 percent of U.S. consumers purchased
prepared meals at least once a month last year,
according to the 2017 Retailer Meal Solutions
Consumer Trend Report from Chicago-based research
firm Technomic.

Tomorrow's
supermarket
According to the
'Supermarket 2020'

And the trend shows no signs of slowing down, says Kelly
Weikel, the company's director of consumer insights.
The Technomic report also found that snacking
has overtaken lunch and dinner as the leading RMS
occasion for consumers who shop the category at least
weekly, and that 55 percent of consumers eat prepared
foods within an hour of purchase.

study, supermarkets
will have fewer aisles
and more space for
prepared foods.
More predictions:

9
or fewer
'highly curated' SKUs

number of aisles, compared
to today's 15 and up

45%
private label SKUs, up from
today's 18 to 20
SOURCE: SYMPHONY RETAIL AI

Fewer Americans love to cook, according to a new study,
opening the door for more grocery prepared food sales.
A study conducted by Eddie Yoon - founder of think
tank and advisory firm Eddie Would Grow, a director
at The Cambridge Group and author of the 2016
book "Superconsumers" - found that 10 percent of
Americans love to cook, down from 15 percent 15 years
ago. Forty-five percent hate to cook and another 45
percent are lukewarm about it.
In a piece published in Harvard Business Review, Yoon
says that given the new numbers, grocers must radically rethink what they stock. "The supermarket business is likely to suffer strong headwinds in the future,
due to long-term shifts in consumer behavior," he says.
"Although many people don't realize it yet, grocery
shopping and cooking are in a long-term decline."
As more people opt to buy prepared meals, grocers
need to reallocate shelf space, and manufacturers will
need to exit entire categories, Yoon says.

8 * FEBRUARY 2018 * instore

Lidl pressuring
others to cut prices
Supermarket retailers located near new Lidl stores in
the eastern United States dropped their prices for key
staple products up to 55 percent lower compared to
markets where Lidl is not present, according to a new
study released by the University of North CarolinaFlagler Business School.
The study - which
examines the competitive
price effect of Lidl's entry
into the US market and
the reaction of chains like
Aldi, Food Lion, Kroger
Publix and Walmart - was
commissioned by Lidl US.
Katrijn Gielens, associate
professor of marketing
at UNC, analyzed prices in six markets where Lidl
operates and six control markets where Lidl is not yet
present in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Prices for a broad basket of 48 grocery products,
including dairy, meats, produce, and canned and
frozen goods, were analyzed.
The study shows that competing retailers set the
price for a half gallon of milk about 55 percent lower
in Lidl markets compared to markets where Lidl is not
present. If also found price reductions of more than 30
percent in categories like avocados and bread-related
products. For some frequently purchased goods, like
ice cream, bananas and cheese, the price reductions
amount to more than 15 percent.

10
aisles

Fewer Americans
are cooking

Debates
and
definitions
to watch

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of instore - February 2018